Can anyone give suggestions about this area....what to see/not bother with....does anyone have suggestions on special resorts or hotels in this area of Bavaria. I would appreciate any help, we will be there in four weeks and still don't have a reservation in the area.

Your question is very vague, which is why you have received no answers - or so I think.

I have been to castles in the area, and I have visited Munich quite a few times. I have no idea how to answer you because the castles are as far east as Herrenchiemsee east of Munich to Linderhof and Neuwschwanstein west of Munich. Within Munich there are two Wittelsbach castles or residenses:
Nymphenburg and the official Residenz in central Munich.

So just what are you asking?

If you want a hotel reccommendatioln I have one: Hotel Astoria in Schwabing at Nicolaistrasse 9.
Good hotel, great breakfast included in the rate, and close to U-Bahn lines that take you downtown to Marienplatz.

As bob_brown notes, the castles built by Ludwig II are all in Bavaria but rather spread out. I am guessing you probably want to go to the most famous, Neuschwanstein, SW of Munich. Hohenschwangau, built by Maximilian II, not Ludwig, is nearby and people often visit both.

You could search for Neuschwanstein or Füssen, the town at the southern end of the Romantic Road, for ideas about places to stay near these castles.

I would strongly recommend Neuschwanstein/Hohenschwangau. It makes sense to stay overnight directly in town - then you are the first at the castle before the tourbuses come.

My personal hotel recommendation is this:

http://www.hohenschwangau.de/jaegerhaus0.0.html

There are also many hotels in nearby Füssen.

In the area, I would also recommend Linderhof Castle and the Wieskirche (a baroque masterpiece). There is also a lot of scenery, e.g. Kochelsee and Walchensee to the east.

Hi D,

Give us your exact itinerary, as you have it right now.

You could certainly include Linderhof with Neuwschwanstein and Hohenschwangau.

Thanks everyone for the information. I did not realize I was being so vague when I asked for info. As of now, we leave Salzburg on the 7th of May with no reservations anywhere until the 9th in Lucerne. We are driving our own vehicle and wanted to explore Bavaria for a few days. Our absolute must is Eagle's Nest. So we are pretty open to whatever info all of you well-traveled tell us. We intended on taking the car ferry from Meersburg to Switzerland unless told otherwise. We are alittle overwhelmed with this part of the trip, like what we can expect driving thru the Alps mileage wise. Thanks everyone for you well needed help.

If Eagle's Nest is a must, I'd make that my first stop after leaving Salzburg.

From there, you can determine where you'd like to go next.

www.viamichelin.com will help with distances and travel times.

When you've come up with an itinerary that you think works, do like ira says and post it here and request comments.

Does anyone know the web site for the Kings tour for Ludwig's castles. How much time do we need leaving eagle's nest and arriving at the first castle?

Sorry, what is "Eagle's Nest"? (I am German)

it's Hitler's famous retreat.

Hope you are luckier than I was a few years ago in spring, our tour was supposed to go to the Eagle's Nest, however there was still too much snow in certain areas, thus impassable. Good luck, I am so sorry I missed it. Halfpint

Web site for tours of Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau:

http://www.hohenschwangau.de/index.php?id=430

I just looked at the eagle's nest website...........and I have a feeling we will not be able to go because of the weather.We wanted to go May 7th, but it probably will not happen. Oh well on to Ludwig's castles.

Having been a visitor to Germany since 1979, I feel qualified to observe that, while Neuschwanstein is THE obvious #1 castle on the standard list of sites-to-see, it is well down the list of best castles. But as I told my wife, she had to see it so as to better appreciate the others. Then, too, the neophytes back home wouldn't think she'd seen a castle if she'd said she hadn't seen Neuschwanstein

Tomboy, in your opinion what are the best castles to see?